I loved this book, which is an odd thing to say because it took me weeks to finish it. It is dense. And the crazy stuff that people called “religion” required more than a few re-reads.
On Rosicrucianism
Paschal Beverly Randolph saw sex as a powerful energy that could be controlled and sublimated into magical works. As he explored sex magic and the power of the Will, he came to odds with Madame Blavatsky who, as others have testified, tried to kill him with her mind.
I assumed that this book would be a more fleshed-out version of religious-inspired dishes, such as monks using a thousand-year-old recipe to brew beer, a la the foods section of Atlas Obscura. It was not. This is a full-on history book about the predominantly Christian religious movements in America, from the Pilgrims and Johnny Appleseed, to the back-to-the-land communal living of the 60’s and 70’s.
People have long wondered, what kind of apples did John Chapman cultivate? Cider apples, not eating apples. Johnny Appleseed was, in the words of Michael Pollan, the American Dionysus bringing alcohol and the means to make it to the western frontier. Until the latter part of the 1800s, potable water was hard to come by on the frontier. Brewing and distilling fruits and grains into alcohol rendered it pathogen-free and safe to drink. During the 1800s, on average, each man, woman, and child consumed approximately 10.5 ounces of hard cider per day.
The first few chapters dragged a bit. However, once you get to the Shakers and the Oneida Colony and the Mormons, things pick up quickly. This book was utterly fascinating.
While the official history of LDS is centered on the male founders and subsequent leaders, what is often overlooked is that within Mormonism there are schismatic sects and denominations. Several sects were founded in the wake of the death of Joseph Smith. James Strang began his group in Voree, Wisconsin, and later moved to Beaver Island in northern Lake Michigan, where the entire colony built a small shipping – some say pirating – empire for nearly a decade.
If you have an interest in the regional cuisines of America, pick up this book. Alternatively, if you have way too many beans from the early days of Covid hoarding, this book is chock full of legume-based vegetarian and vegan recipes designed to feed an entire congregation or commune.
